Five held in Bengaluru for smuggling whale ambergris worth Rs 80 cr

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, Aug 11, 2021: Bengaluru’s Central Crime Branch (CCB) police on Tuesday said that it seized a whopping 80 kg of a banned marine substance called Ambergris worth about Rs 80 crore from five people. This is perhaps the biggest ever seizure of banned Ambergris (the endangered sperm whale’s vomit/faecal matter), the police added. According to the police, the arrested are identified as Mujeeb Pasha (48), Mohammed alias Munna (45), Gulabchand alias Guddu (40) and Santhosh (31), all residents of Bengaluru, while another accused Jagannathachar (52), was a resident of Raichur district in Karnataka. The police added that based on a tip off, the CCB team raided a godown where rare artefacts and the ambergris were stored illegally.

 

"India has banned sale or possession of this material under provisions of forest and environmental acts. In India, under the Wildlife Protection Act, it is a punishable crime to hunt sperm whales which produce ambergris," the police explained. The police added that the endangered sperm whales mostly eat fish like cuttle and squid. "The hard spikes of these fish do not get digested easily. When it comes in contact with the soft surface of the intestine, a fat-like liquid is released. This liquid sticks all these substances together and the intestine absorbs water from it. This process makes it much harder," the police said.

The police added that there are instances where ambergris covers the intestine of sperm whales and it leads to the rupturing of intestines. “Besides, it (Ambergris) is produced by only one percent of the sperm whales. As a result of this, Ambergris is so precious and valuable and considered as floating gold,” the police explained.

The police further said that Ambergris has been mostly known for its use in creating perfume and fragrance like musk. "Ambergris has historically been used in food and drink. In India, it costs around Rs one crore and trading and handling it is illegal," the police said. The police have registered a case and said that further investigation is ongoing.

Courtesy:The News Minute